Meltdown Comics Accepts Bitcoin

Meltdown Comics started taking the buzzworthy currency of the moment, Bitcoin, at its store on Thursday, joining the growing but still small in number ranks of physical stores that take bitcoin. Bitcoin is a "cryptocurrency," essentially serving as digital currency that's protected by cryptography. It's been tied to illicit activities due to the ability to bypass traditional routes that could lead to transfers being tracked, but it's also been gaining some mainstream acceptance.

Bitcoin Center NYC

Where should a pioneer of digital currency open shop? Wall St of course!

Like many other locales around the world, residents of NYC can now take their digital currency to a real world location, Bitcoin Center NYC on Wall St, for buying and selling.

While it's always possible to meet someone one on one, having the ability to meet in a public forum where you can exchange and discuss bitcoins allows more people to learn about the cryptocurrency and how it can potentially impact our world.

Bitcoin can get you a ride to space!

Richard Branson: 6 Bitcoin Customers Confirmed for Virgin Galactic Space Flight

Billionaire entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson has revealed a handful of people have paid in bitcoin for their place on board the Virgin Galactic spaceship.

Back in November, Branson announced his commercial space flight venture Virgin Galactic was to accept payment in bitcoins and, just two months later, “six or seven” people have already paid for their tickets in the digital currency.

Earlier this month, Virgin Galactic took its SpaceShipTwo on its third test flight, with the craft reaching 71,000 feet – its highest yet.

SpaceShipTwo is a consumer-ready vehicle designed to fly to the edge of space. It is partly based on the technology of SpaceShipOne, the craft that completed the first manned private spaceflight in 2004.

Read more at CoinDesk

Bitcoin and Litecoin Top Sources of WikiLeaks Donations

Though it should come to no surprise to those of you who are already members of Get In On Bitcoin, and thus familiar with the benefits of Bitcoin/Litecoin, Wikileaks announced recently that the majority of their funding donations come through the popular cryptocurrencies...

Notorious nonprofit journalistic organization WikiLeaks revealed via Twitter on 24th January that the majority of its public funding now comes through bitcoin and litecoin donations.

The tweet included a link to its official donation page, which lists major mainstream channels like American Express, MasterCard and PayPal. The organisation also accepts traditional bank transfers and Visa as other payment options.

Read more at CoinDesk

Buying With the Bitcoin Crowd

East Side chiropractor Steven Schram isn't your typical spine man. The intellectual adventurer has a Ph.D. in chemistry and a passion for computer programming. But what really sets him apart? The doctor is accepting Bitcoin, the nascent digital currency backed by no government and recognized by few banks. It's a bit of a risk, he admits. If the currency's value tumbles, he's out of luck. 

On the other hand, he hasn't had much opportunity for financial derring-do. While he offers a 10% discount to patients who pay in Bitcoin, no one has taken him up on the deal. "That's great," clients say. "Now let me write you a check."

Most folks still don't understand the currency, says Dr. Schram, who envisions a brave new "Bitcoin economy." He's one of the prescient few who got in early, before the value of a single coin zoomed to more than $800. How early, and how much did he invest? Dr. Schram wouldn't say: "I don't want it asked and I don't want it answered!" 

Well, I'm not afraid to disclose my own Bitcoin situation. I now own one-eighth of one coin, worth roughly $93. And it wasn't easy to get my paws on the thing.

There are scads of websites swapping dollars for Bitcoin, but most look a little shady, or have a wait period. I turned to Patrick Cheng, who hosts biweekly Bitcoin workshops at his Chinatown videogame repair shop, xCubicle. He invited me over so he could set me up.

Read more at WSJ

Video Cards Drive First-Day Sales Surge For TigerDirect

If you're a member already, you already know why this headline isn't necessarily a good thing. That said... it still shows how big companies accepting Bitcoin can reach out to a huge new market of customers.

TigerDirect’s decision to begin accepting bitcoin payments has sparked “video card madness” at the online electronics dealer, brand manager Steven Leeds told CoinDesk.
“Every single video card has seen a more than 50 percent spike [in sales],” Leeds said.
Rounding out the top four items in terms of sales increases since the company’s 23rd January announcement were power units, tablets and Xbox units. Further, Leeds revealed that TigerDirect’s website has seen a 30% bump in traffic on the news.
The top selling item in the first day was the Sapphire Radeon R9 280X VAPOR-X, of which 30 units were sold. Leeds reported that one buyer bought nearly half – 14 – of these components.
As of press time, the item was out of stock on TigerDirect’s website.
The news that TigerDirect would accept bitcoin was perhaps the biggest announcement on a day that included reveals that Fancy and Naughty America would also add bitcoin to their lists of accepted payment methods.
Leeds attributed the success to the fact that it offers products that more directly appeal to the community, as well as its more measured approach in its launch.

Read more at CoinDesk

App.net Launches Backer, A Bitcoin-Friendly Crowdfunding Engine

This morning, App.net announced that they’re opening up the engine they built for their Bitcoin campaign, allowing other companies to use the platform to raise money for individual features. They’re calling the new platform Backer.
Amongst other things, Backer has two big standout features: developers can choose to accept payment via credit cards or Bitcoin (or both), and open source projects aren’t charged any fees. (If you keep your source locked down, however, there’s a 5% fee taken only if/when your campaign proves successful.)

Read more at Tech Crunch